Not far from us, about 45 min drive. Ambert is about 30 min away over the pass. These guys (and gals, as 2 were killed in the south recently on a domestic dispute intervention) really don’t know in advance what kind of situation they are going to encounter when they get there, and the sad thing is that the rural gendarmes aren’t trained as much in nighttime firearms usage in the middle of nowhere (despite being soldiers). Listening to radio reports today, the guy had a regular arsenal up there, night vision scopes, a FAMAS (WTF ?), the standard issue assault rifle for the French army, and a range of other firearms.